Useful Websites:

Tag: too many cooks spoil the broth

There are hundreds of English idioms related to food. Some of them are very common, others are more obscure. Here are my seven favourite:

1. too many cooks spoil the broth
Meaning: too many people trying to do something at the same time will ruin the end result. Example: I don’t need 5 people to help me change a light bulb. It’s a case of too many cooks…

2. to put all your eggs in one basket
Meaning: to rely too much on a positive outcome from one thing and have no contingency plan. Example: Remember to apply for some universities other than your first choice. You don’t want to put all your eggs in one basket

3. the apple of your eye
Meaning: something which you consider to be perfect or very good. Example: His little daughter is the apple of his eye.

4. take something with a pinch / grain of salt
Meaning: take something lightly. To accept something but remain sceptical. Example: He took the fortune teller’s advice on next week’s lottery numbers with a grain of salt.

5. eye candy
Meaning: someone or something that’s very attractive to look at. Example: The images in the book aren’t instructional, they’re just eye candy.

6. mutton dressed as lamb
Meaning: someone trying to appear younger than he or she really is Example: Grandma really shouldn’t wear those miniskirts. She looks like mutton dressed as lamb.

7. in a nutshell
Used to introduce a summary Example: In a nutshell, all these expressions are useful every day.